Thessaloniki massacre
The Thessaloniki massacre was an act of retaliation carried out by the Roman Emperor Theodosius I in 390 on insurgent residents of the Greek city of Thessaloniki .
The cause of the uprising movement was the arrest of a popular charioteer who had tried to sexually seduce a servant or even the master himself , ordered by the emperor's master , Butherich . The charioteer was locked in a prison, but the citizens of Thessaloniki demanded his release. Butherich, a Goth , was murdered in the course of the ensuing riot, whereupon Emperor Theodosius stepped in and ordered executions, but withdrew the order shortly afterwards (and too late). In the hippodrome of Thessaloniki, however, angry Gothic troops allegedly slaughtered 7,000 people; the number may be exaggerated, but indicates the magnitude of the massacre. This incident aroused the anger of the Bishop of Milan , Ambrosius , who demanded church penance from the emperor and a return to the usual leniency. Theodosius declared himself ready to take part in the mass again .
Although the imperial authority was not questioned during this process, the increased moral importance of the church representatives became clear, and the emperor could no longer disregard their views.
literature
In every scientific treatise on the life of the emperor, the massacre and its consequences are discussed. The following are representative:
- Adolf Lippold : Theodosius the great and his time (= Beck'sche black series 209). 2nd, revised and expanded edition. Beck, Munich 1980, ISBN 3-406-06009-9 , p. 40ff.